A group of Nigerians recently deported from Germany have criticised organisers of the National Migration Dialogue in Abuja, saying the forum failed to give victims of forced removals a platform to recount their ordeals and seek redress.
The event, convened by the Civil Society for Migration and Development to discuss implementation strategies for the 2025 National Migration Policy, drew international stakeholders including the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the European Union and representatives of the Federal Government.
Several returnees who attended the session, however, said their expectations were not met.
Speaking to journalists, Bright Obasuyi, one of the deportees, said organisers denied victims an opportunity to speak directly to the visiting delegations.
Obasuyi accused Nigerian officials at the forum of downplaying accounts of abuse by German immigration authorities and focusing instead on diplomatic talking points and success stories.
He recounted his alleged mistreatment during deportation, claiming he was shocked with an electric device and tightly restrained for the duration of an eight-hour flight from Germany, and said the episode was widely shared on social media.
Obasuyi said he had sought legal redress in Germany and urged future dialogues to give deportees unmediated access to stakeholders so their experiences could inform preventive measures.
Another deportee, Richie Idemudia, told reporters he was arrested at his workplace and placed on a deportation flight before he could consult his lawyer.
He added that, on returning to Nigeria, he received no tangible assistance from government agencies and described claims by officials of support and integration programmes as misleading.
A female returnee, Wealth Ogbo, also appealed for help. Ogbo said she spent more than a month in detention in Germany before being expelled on April 16, 2024, and returned with nothing.
She described ongoing health problems, including sight loss in one eye and complications that required two operations and said doctors’ reports recommending against her removal were ignored.
Ogbo said she now lives in a church and lacks basic necessities, and called on authorities and donor agencies to provide urgent medical and financial support.
Nosa Okundia, treasurer of the Returned Migrants Association in Edo State, lamented that deportees were sidelined during the dialogue.
He urged organisers to engage directly with returnees when formulating policies, stressing that meaningful reform must be grounded in the lived experiences of those affected.
The National Migration Dialogue was billed as a platform to institutionalise state-level migration governance, promote collaboration among civil-society actors, government institutions and the private sector, and raise awareness of the 2025 National Migration Policy across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.
Intended outcomes included coordinated migration interventions and pathways for sustainable local funding driven by private-sector investment.
But several deportees and activists said the forum missed a crucial chance to surface the realities of forced removals and torture, which could have prompted concrete measures to protect Nigerians abroad.
They called on CSOs and international partners to ensure future events prioritise the voices of returnees and to back practical support including skills acquisition and small-business grants to help rebuild lives.
Organisers of the dialogue have not yet issued a formal response to the complaints aired by the deportees.
